Australian Open | Ninth coronation for Novak Djokovic

(Melbourne) We thought maybe Novak Djokovic would have a slightly shorter fuse this time at the Australian Open.

The Associated Press

After all, he was hit in the chest while sliding down his third round match and he said he had a cramp. With Sunday’s final approaching, Djokovic has received five runs so far in the tournament – a record for him on his way to the Grand Slam final. He faced Daniel Medvedev, who had 20 consecutive matches.

Yes, this is. We’re talking Djokovic at Melbourne Park, where his dominance is unmatched in history – nine finals and nine championships. In addition, he approached Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal with 18 major career titles, two times less than that of his “Big Three” partners.

Djokovic capitalized on his excellent serve, unstoppable return and back game to score 11 of 13 matches at some point in the match, en route to a 7-5, 6-2, 6- .2 win over Medvedev. And with that, he won the third consecutive title in Australia.

When the match was over, after less than two hours of playing time, the Serbian lay on his back on the field. After greeting the Russian, Djokovic walked to his chair, lifted his polo shirt and removed the many bandages that covered his stomach.

“It’s been a private roller coaster ride for the last few weeks,” Djokovic said, with the silver trophy hanging on his right arm.

He offered “special thanks” to his handler, Ulysses Badiou, for allowing him to continue the tournament and achieve his combined record of 18-0 in the semifinals and tough finals in Melbourne.

Djokovic, 33, has won six of the last 10 majors and will remain at the top of the rankings until at least March 8. This means that it will be at the top against 311^H Week in a row, erasing at the same time the record that had until now belonged to Federer.

Medvedev, the fourth player in the world, was playing his second Grand Slam final. He bent over to Nadal at the 2019 US Open.

Medvedev said: “It may not be the last.” I can not Talk. “

Then he joked in Medvedev, the 25-year-old tennis player who hasn’t fallen since last October: “I hope you can wait a few more years …”

Djokovic has now won nine titles in Australia, five at Wimbledon, three at the US Open and one at the French Open. The question now is whether he can catch up with Nadal and Federer – and maybe even surpass them.

If the trend continues, the chances are good. He is a year younger than Rafa, and 6 and a half years younger than Federer, who will turn 40^H His birthday is in August and he has not competed in the tournament in over a year due to two knee operations.

In doubles, Philippe Pulasik had an unforgettable weekend as he won his first major title just two days after the birth of his second daughter.

The 35-year-old Slovak screamed and hugged his Croatian partner, Ivan Dodig, after defeating reigning champions Rajiv Ram and Joe Salisbury 6-3 6-4 in the final on Sunday.